The Sacred Tooth Relic - Dalanda Maligawa Kandy
Literary sources indicate that the sacred Tooth Relic was received by king Vimaladharmasuriya I with great veneration and placed in the new three – storied shrine built by him near the royal palace. The Dutch Plan of 1765 shows the ground plans of two shrines. The one at the back should be the original one built by the king. His successor was Senarat (1603 – 1634), a brother of the deceased king had to face severe opposition from the contenders. He had to live in such distant places as Mahiyangana. He was able take the Tooth Relic to a safe location at Madamahanuvara in the hills enveloped with thick forest cover. Even under these difficult conditions, king Senarat was able to give due honor to the sacred Tooth Relic by placing it in a suitable shrine. Rajasimha II (1634 – 1686) succeeded king Senarat. As the Portuguese interference in local political affairs was intensified, Rajasimha sought the aid of the Dutch to circumvent the situation. This action did not meet the ap